Presently, existing methods to detect and/or measure integrity degradation in blades and vanes of turbine engines do not effectively gauge the extent of or potential formation of integrity degradation, that is, a crack, without manually and/or visually inspecting the blades and vanes. One present method for detecting integrity degradation in a blade is limited to helicopters and their respective blades. Such methods concerning integrity degradation detection and their related apparatus, which all pertain to helicopter blades, are described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,985,318; 4,026,660; 4,106,332; 4,345,237; 4,524,620; and, 4,727,251.
However, one skilled in the art of turbine engines recognizes that helicopter blades are very long and slender as compared to typical aircraft blades and are subject to severe stress from flexing, bending, twisting, etc, which are different than stress experienced by turbine engine blades and vanes. Thus, the information contained in the aforementioned patents is useful for what is taught, but such information is not readily adaptable to the challenges and obstacles experienced when attempting to detect the extent of or potential formation of integrity degradation of turbine engine blades and vanes without manually and/or visually inspecting the turbine engine blades and vanes.
Consequently, there exists a need for a method and apparatus for detecting integrity degradation in turbine engine blades and vanes without manually and/or visually inspecting the blades and vanes.